Many companies today in traditionally non-technological industries are, in fact, technology companies, with digital platforms acting as the center and foundation of all the work they do. Where central markets, runways, accountants and health clinics used to be considered business drivers, technology now rules.

It's also becoming a lot more accepted in the business world that "making money while making good" is not just ok, but is looked upon favorably and could drive future business frameworks, tax structures, and bottom line considerations, as we saw with the 2010 debut of the B-Corp.

But what about peace? Can business (making money) and technology be actual drivers of peace? Can an altruistic idea and idealistic pursuit mesh with business to contribute to a better world? Where in-person connections and meetings were seen as paramount and necessary?

One woman thinks so.

Credit: Voyaj

Yasmine el Baggari, 22, has taken years of cultural experiences and mission-driven enthusiasm and created a platform that she hopes will create a more hospitable world through the personal exchanges of people around the world. Voyaj was born out of several years and over sixty family visits throughout the US by el Baggari, a native Moroccan who came to the US at 17 to attend Hampshire College.

She felt strongly that the sorts of interactions and relationships that she had could, if experienced by many people on a large scale, create a more peaceful global society through mutual understanding, cultural acceptance and positive relationship-building. This is done through an online platform that connects travelers (called Voyajeurs) to Hosts around the world.

Simple enough, seems like a trip planning service. Don't forget, she's trying to "foster respect for our diversity through meaningful connections, person by person, to take part in the solution for a more peaceful, caring world." So it's a little bit more than just allowing people to travel and host. We'll talk a bit about that in a second.

Let's talk first about the "large scale" part of the equation. Yasmine - and most of us - made connections through active, in-person networks and connections, usually through organic processes. This is certainly a very wholesome process, however it isn't one that can scale easily to achieve the global goals of the company.

This is where technology comes in. By providing a platform for interested Voyajeurs and Hosts to be matched up easily from any part of the world, scale becomes significantly easier.

Still stuck on the "right, so we're just planning trips here" angle? A large part of this algorithm uses information that each Voyajeur and Host provides about interests, cultural experiences, global concerns - the type of stuff that fosters healthy conversation and leads to mutual understanding. The platform also makes use of submitted videos by both Voyajeurs and Hosts explaining what type of experience they're looking for, what type of person they are, and allows for a little personal touch.

It's right here in this sweet spot - matching based on more than just location and willing participants - that the mission of fostering peace is advanced. Users are connected based on attributes that theoretically will get to those healthy conversations and that mutual understanding we were talking about.

As el Baggari states, "Using technology and sophisticated algorithms, we really change the travel experience. For too long, empty rooms, guidebooks and bus tours offered limited world views, with little emotion beyond the excitement of travel. With Voyaj, we share daily life and views with locals as they live it. A traveler is no longer just a visitor, they become a guest in a local's home."

During the home stay is where the process is meant to encourage free discussion, sharing and learning in an effort to increase understanding between a Voyajeur and a Host. It's the sum of these conversations that el Baggari hopes to make larger changes around the world, and she feels the technology is essential to make the entire system scale to the level she hopes to see, where large impact is being felt.

And others agree. The list of grantors, funders and supporters is long. She recently received the Entrepreneurship and Innovation Award from her alma mater, the funds of which are being exclusively used for further development of the Voyaj platform through added sophistication of the algorithm used to match Voyajeurs to Hosts. El Baggari was also invited to the White House as one of the 100 Most Influential Travel Bloggers, and one of the 70 Emerging Global Entrepreneurs headed by President Obama. She's received a number of awards and fellowships, including “She Leads Africa” Fellowship, the last round of the African Entrepreneurship Award, and two Ingenuity Awards. Recently, she was invited to speak about Voyaj at the World Economic Forum, got selected as one of the top 10 finalists of the MIT startup competition, and hand-picked from a strong roster of applicants to join 9 other One Young World Ambassadors at the Global Social Business Summit in Berlin, Germany.